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extend access to The Choral Journal
An Interview
An with Int? jfH
Robert
Robert
Shaw:
Reflections
Reflec at Eighty
by by
Jeffrey Baxter Jeffrey Bax
HP&L v\wL r
Robert Shaw
Robert Shaw's distinguished career began in New York City In 1979, Shaw was appointed by President Jimmy Carter to
in 1938, where he prepared choruses for such renowned con- the National Council on the Arts and he was a 1991 recipient of
ductors as Fred Waring, Arturo Toscanini, and Bruno Walter. the Kennedy Center Honors, the nations highest award given to
In 1949 he formed the Robert Shaw Chorale, which for two artists. Musical America, the international directory of the per
decades reigned as America's premier touring choir. Under the forming arts, named him Musician of the Year for 1992, and
auspices of the U.S. State Department, the Chorale performed during the same year he was awarded the National Medal of the
in thirty countries throughout Europe, the Soviet Union, the Arts in a White House ceremony. He was the 1993 recipient of
Middle East, and Latin America. During this period Shaw also the Conductors' Guild Theodore Thomas Award, in recognition
served as Music Director of the San Diego Symphony and then of his outstanding achievement in conducting and his contribu
as Associate Conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, working tions to the education and training of young conductors,
closely with George Szell for eleven years. He served as Music A regular guest conductor of major orchestras in this country
Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra from 1967 to and abroad, Shaw also is in demand as a teacher and lecturer at
1988, during which time the orchestra garnered widespread leading U.S. universities. He founded the Robert Shaw Institute
acclaim through national and international tours and award- to foster excellence in music-making, especially in the choral art.
winning recordings. The Institute's summer festivals have attracted admiring atten
Throughout his career Shaw has received abundant recog- tion from the international press and produced a number o
nition for his work. His honors include degrees and citations recordings from the Robert Shaw Festival Singers. Currently he
from forty U.S. colleges and universities, thirteen Grammy serves as Music Director Emeritus and Conductor Laureate
Awards, England's Gramophone Award, a Gold Record for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and performs and records
the first RCA classical recording to sell more than a million with the Atlanta-based Robert Shaw Chamber Singers. Th
copies, four ASCAP Awards for service to contemporary mu- following interview took place December 21, 1995, in Atlanta,
sic, the first Guggenheim Fellowship ever awarded to a con- Jeffrey Baxter: Mr. Shaw, you are widely regarded as one
ductor, the Alice M. Ditson Award for service to contemporary the first conductors to elevate American choral singing to the
music, the George Peabody Medal for outstanding contribu- level one finds in great American orchestral playing. When you
tions to music in America, and the Gold Baton Award of the first arrived in New York in the 1930s, what kind of cho
American Symphony Orchestra League for distinguished ser- singing did you find?
vice to music and the arts. Robert Shaw: As regards the niceties and disciplines of into
nation, enunciation, and balance, it seemed to me that the
Jeffrey Baxter is Choral Assistant at the Atlanta Symphony colleges and universities of California were equal, if not superior
Orchestra and Adjunct Professor of Music History at Georgia to the institutions of the East. Howard Swan for some years had
State University, Atlanta. been active in southern California and, with others, had raised
choral singing to a remarkable degree. I also found two vast
Mús
Música Mundi J>
he was going, which was the last note of
the piece. On the other hand, Szell found
his happiness and satisfaction in the con ■■■■■""
■■■■iJ) ^
— Concert
Concert
ToursTours
struction of the piece and in each mea
"The Artistic Alternative"
sure of every movement. A third person
who also influenced me greatly was Julius
Herford, with whom I did structural and
analytical studies. I think of the three,
Experience
Experience Counts!
Counts!
Herford's influence most profoundly af
fected my development. Concert
Concert Touring
Touring Specialists
Specialistson
on5 5CONTINENTS
CONTINENTS
J.B.: You created your fine choral/
with
with custom
custom tours
tours arranged
arrangedininover
over4040COUNTRIES
COUNTRIES
orchestral discography with the Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra Chorus and Cham
ber Chorus—two volunteer ensembles. Experience
Experience the
the Tradition!
Tradition!
What has been your guiding principle in Tuscany
Tuscany International
InternationalChildren's
Children'sChorus
ChorusFestival
Festival
maintaining their "amateur" status?
R.S.: It has been a guiding fact of life July 88 -- 13,1996,
July 13,1996, Doreen
DoreenRao,
Rao,Conductor/Clinician
Conductor/Clinician
rather than a guiding principle, in that July 14 -- 20,1997,
July 14 20,1997,Jean
JeanAshworth
AshworthBartle,
Bartle, Conductor/Clinician
Conductor/Clinician
there simply is not enough money to sup
Música Mundi, Inc. 1 800 947 1991
port a year-round professional chorus of 111
111 Main
Main Street,
Street,Suite Suite2 2• •Los
LosAltos,
Altos,CA
CA94022
94022
this skill and artistic competence. On Phone
Phone 415
415 949 1991949 1991
• Fax 415 • Fax 415 9491626
9491626
the other hand, it is not a given that the
Summer Workshops
Medieval,
Medieval,
Renaissance, Baroque, Early American, Ren
Classical,
Classical,
Romantic, Contemporary, Jazz, Pop, Rom
and more!
in Ensemble
c, , Smith SmithCollege,
College,
Northampton, Massachusetts
Singing Northampton, Massachusetts
Session
Sessioni: i:June
June
21-23;
21-23;
JuneJune
25-29; 25-29;
or all 8 or
days
all 8 days
Session
Session2: 2:August
August
2-4; 2-4;
August
August
5-10; or5-10;
all 8 or
daysall 8 days
KI just
^1 want to say thank
justthank for a great musicalwant to say thanks,
workshop!
workshop!
What wonderful musicalness, singing and artistry! ^ What wonderfu
—PHIL
—PHIL
MATTSON, 1994 Participant in the Western Wind
MATTSON,
Workshop
in Ensemble
in Singing Ensemble
Call 1-800-788-2187
Call 1-800-788-2187
1994 Partici
Singing
for information about
great,great,
but who knew it would be this great!! w but The Westernknew
who Wind Vocal Ensemble it wo
263 West 86th Street* New York, NY 10024
—1995
—1995
Summer Workshop Participant Summer
212-873-2848 Worksho
a dozen major choral/orchestral works ex Rehearsal tapes help choirs learn music 5 times faster
amined in the light of the relationship Perfect for learning oratorios, requiems, cantatas - any major w
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I also want to continue as long as I can
with the [Robert Shaw] Institute, which Vocal Jazz for All Ages
was started in France in the 1980s for the with David Riley
study and recording of the major choral
June 24-28,1996
repertoire. We also have plans to con
Offered by nationally recognized arranger, composer, editor, and clinician
tinue the series of Carnegie Hall Work
David Riley, this workshop is designed for the contemporary ensemble
shop concerts in New York as well as the
director who works with various age groups in the vocal jazz idiom. Class
videotapes created from it. activities will help participants develop choral techniques for teaching basic
J.B.: Speaking as a working artist— jazz styles, articulations, balance and blend of jazz sonorities, and interpreta
and former member of the National Jk tion of jazz choral works for all ages. Class involvement activities will
David Riley ^ graduate credits or noncredit. Meets 9:00 a.m.^t:30 p.m., Monday-Friday.
funding? How important should support
ing the creative arts be to a society? MUSIC For more information: Office of Summer Sessions,
ITHACA
R.S.: I think it should play the role
AT Ithaca College, 120 Towers Concourse, Ithaca, NY 14850-7141;